Month: December 2016

“In a world where everything is connected, the ability to strategically disconnect can become a superpower.” – Tim Ferriss

Lately I’ve been finding myself, probably like many others, spending ungodly amounts of time on social media. Doing absolutely nothing. Scrolling. On a timeline that appears to be endless. Endless in length and endless in amounts of totally useless information. Kanye West, cats, conspiracy theories, some (mostly mediocre) art and graffiti, fake news, self proclaimed MMA experts, bullshit politics and pictures of food dominate my visual input on a daily basis. And the cats might just be the most interesting part of it all.

Obviously I use social media for what it was first intended for; connecting with people. People who live too far away to talk to regularly in real life. And to be able to do so is truly a great thing.

I also use it to ask people about stuff I might need. For example; last week I decided that me and my girlfriend needed an accountant. I put up a post on Facebook asking for one and tomorrow I have an appointment with an accountant that multiple people recommended to me. To be able to find things so quickly – and reliable – is truly a gift of technology and I’m fully aware of these technological benefits.

I know that promoting my work on social media is a big part of being an artist today, however, I became aware of the fact that I spend more time looking at things that interest me, than actually doing those things that interest me. I spend more time looking at great art, than I am attempting to actually create great art. Looking for inspiration, but actually just getting a quick dopamine fix in the form of a pretty picture. Not really ‘connecting’ with any of it.

I find myself trying to make ‘good content’ in stead of good art. Subconsciously looking for approval of people I don’t even know. Being anxious about opinions of people I don’t really care about, amounts of double taps, notifications, shares and likes.

For the sake of experiment I’m gonna try to disconnect for a while. Just a few weeks to try it out. I’ll be watching some films, reading some books that have been stacked on my nightstand for months, go to a museum to actually see the works that I scroll past on my timeline, and most importantly make some new work. Making new work just for me. No likes, no comments, no anxiety, no expectations, nothing.